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July 7, 2009
Expat Anniversary
One year ago this week, I arrived for the first time at the unexpectedly modern Tan Son Nhat airport in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. I remember feeling a mix of excitement, anticipation, and fear at finally meeting the city where I planned to spend the following 18 months of my life. I stepped out of the sterile, air conditioned comfort of the terminal schlepping what were (save a box of journals and a peet coat stored in the attic of my father's home in Central California) my only physical possessions, stuffed into these two suitcases and two backpacks.
As tends to happen when one settles down in a place, I have since accumulated more stuff - a conical hat, books like "The Quiet American," and clothes (I will admit it - I have a weakness for An Phuoc). As a result, I can no longer carry all that I own, and I am fine with that because this is where home is - at least until December 2009.
So, what have I done in the past year? I have learned to speak conversational Vietnamese, made (lifelong?) friends with expats and Vietnamese, and worked for one year in international business. What an rich year it has been since I enjoyed this bowl of noodles on my first day as a resident of Saigon at Pho 24 (coming soon to a mini mall food court near you)...
I am so thankful to PiA for making this experience possible. It has been the richest year of my adult life and has defined my career and life direction. This week marks my first "Expat Anniversary," and I intend to celebrate many more - I may be a lifer!
Posted by mt_mrobinson at July 7, 2009 5:01 PM
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Comments
are you only there till december of 09?
Posted by: dhruv at July 14, 2009 11:34 PM